At the age of 94, the British composer Monty Norman, forever associated with the film adventures of James Bond, died today. 60 years ago, Norman composed the original 007 theme song, which in one form or another accompanied all 25 films in the series.
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Information about the death appeared on Norman’s official website page. A black-and-white photo of the composer is accompanied by the announcement: “It is with sadness that we announce that Monty Norman passed away on July 11, 2022 after a short illness.”
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Norman’s most famous work was created for the first film from the Bond saga Dr. Well from 1962 with Sean Connery in the lead role. However, the producers were not completely satisfied with Norman’s version and had it modified by the great film score John Barry, writes AFP.
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Therefore, the idea spread that the author of the famous jingle is Barry, who until his death in 2011 created musical accompaniment for about a dozen films about James Bond. Barry was once identified as the author in the British newspaper Sunday Times, on which Norman then awarded compensation in the amount of 30,000 pounds (today 872,000 CZK).
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The composer, whose birth name was Norman Noserovitch, was born in London to a Jewish family and got his first guitar when he was 16, writes the AP agency. He performed with big bands or alongside comedian Benny Hill, later wrote compositions for British rock pioneers Cliff Richard and Tommy Steele and also participated in several musicals.
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